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Pierre Guay — October 22, 2004

Professional Conduct Decision

What is a professional conduct decision?

An investigation into a Licensed Insolvency Trustees (LIT)'s professional conduct is initiated when there is information to suggest that the LIT has not properly performed the duties of a trustee or there has been improper administration of an estate or lack of compliance with the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (BIA).

In some cases, the findings are sufficiently serious to support a recommendation for sanctions against the LIT's licence (cancel or suspend a LIT's licence (subsection 13.2(5) of the BIA) or impose conditions or limitations (subsection 14.01(1) of the BIA)).

The professional conduct decision is deemed to be a decision of a federal board, commission or tribunal and may be judicially reviewed by the federal court.

In re:
Pierre Guay,
Holder of an Individual Trustee Licence
For the Province of Quebec

Decision Rendered Pursuant to the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act

Whereas a general audit of the office of Raymond Chabot Inc. in Sherbrooke was conducted in October 2000 by a senior evaluation officer of the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy (OSB);

Whereas pursuant to that general audit the senior analyst, professional conduct, of the OSB, in accordance with the general delegation of powers in section 14.02(1) of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (the Act), submitted a report on the conduct of the individual trustees Yves Guay and Pierre Guay and the corporate trustee Raymond Chabot Inc.;

Whereas the following infractions alleged in the report were established against the individual trustee Pierre Guay, acting on behalf of the corporate trustee, namely that he:

on November 17, 1998 withdrew the sum of $779.33 as fees in the estate of Pierre Sirois Construction Inc. without first obtaining permission from the Court, thereby contravening section 25(1.3) of the Act;

withdrew the sum of $500 from the estate of Réal Audet as fees without first obtaining permission from the Court, thereby contravening section 25(1.3) of the Act;

withdrew the sum of $350 from the estate of Pierre Lessard as fees without first obtaining permission from the Court, thereby contravening section 25(1.3) of the Act;

did not dispose of the estate and insolvency account balances held in trust in the "Normand Bourque Syndic Ltée (interest)" file by a supplementary or amended dividend slip, thereby contravening section 5(5) of the Act and section 15 of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy's Directive No. 8 on Unclaimed Dividends and Undistributed Funds;

made payments of disbursements by cheques drawn on the "Normand Bourque Syndic Ltée (interest)" account instead of being drawn on the estate account, thereby contravening section 25(2) of the Act;

on August 29, 2000 signed and submitted to the Court and to the Superintendent of Bankruptcy an amended report on the application for discharge of Jean-Louis Pratte which he should reasonably have known was misleading, by failing to indicate in the amounts realized the sum of $200 paid by this bankrupt to obtain a new hearing date for his discharge application, thereby contravening sections 13.5 and 170(1) of the Act and section 45 of the Rules;

on September 14, 2000 signed a cheque for $200 made out to the corporate trustee from the [TRANSLATION] "summary bankruptcies, disbursements" bank account and then paid unauthorized fees to the corporate trustee, since there had been no deemed taxation of the account of the estate of Jean-Louis Pratte at that date, thereby contravening section 25(1.3) of the Act;

Whereas in relation to the acts alleged against the trustee Pierre Guay in the estate files, he was acting in the files of the trustee Yves Guay;

Whereas, in view of all the facts and circumstances mentioned, the undersigned does not consider it advisable or in the public interest to modify or reject the modified recommendation of the senior analyst, professional conduct, giving rise to the penalty accepted on both sides and described herein;

I the undersigned, as delegate of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy, in accordance with the powers conferred on me pursuant to section 14.01(2) of the Act, approve the following agreement and order the following:

the licence of Pierre Guay, trustee, is suspended for a period of three weeks beginning on October 25, 2004, and during that period the trustee may not act as a trustee in bankruptcy nor accept any instructions under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act;

if the trustee does not comply with the restriction imposed on his licence in this order, he shall be in default pursuant to section 13.2(5)(b) of the Act;

each duplicate original of this Order signed by the undersigned delegate shall have the same force and effect and may be used as such for all legal purposes.